Do It Yourself French Manicure

How to Do a French Manicure for Gorgeous Hands

The finishing touch on any makeover is a good-as-new manicure, but who says you have to fork up a bundle at the salon to get perfect natural nails? You can maintain beautiful hands and nails at home with a few simple tools. We recommend a French manicure or American manicure (Frenchie's more subtle American sister) because they go anywhere, and with anything. Herein, our best do it yourself French manicure tips. Try on makeup and fashion trends in our virtual styling studio.

To begin your perfect French manicure, open a window to ventilate your bathroom or find a comfortable spot to paint your nails outside. Remove all traces of nail polish with an acetone-free nail polish remover. For best results, soak a few cotton balls in the solution and press them onto your nail beds for a few seconds to loosen the polish and make it easy to remove.

Use a pair of cuticle clippers to remove stray hangnails caused by dry skin. Never cut your cuticles with clippers, instead push moisturized cuticle skin back with an orange stick wrapped in cotton to avoid damaging the nail bed. If you discover a hangnail but don't have clippers handy, prevent it from ripping further by slicking it to the skin with a bit of lip balm or sticky lip gloss. This will help you resist the urge to yank it off with your teeth before you can cut it.

Try this weekly anti-hangnail treatment: fill a small bowl three quarters full with olive oil, or mix equal parts olive oil and hand moisturizer, and pop it in the microwave for 15 seconds. Soak each hand in the warm solution until it cools for healthy, hydrated cuticles. File your nails into the most coveted shape du jour, the "squoval," which is a cross between a square and an oval. It is the most flattering shape for all hands.

French manicure kits can limit you because the whites are too white and pinks too pink. Buy the colors you like separately as you would any other color. The sheerer the polish, the less room you have for making mistakes. Our French mani polishes of chioce are totally natural and look more like a so-called American manicure than the stark white French variety.

Start with a clear, strengthening base coat to prevent your nails from breaking and yellowing. Allow it to dry, then apply two coats to white polish to your tips. Contrary to popular belief, a do it yourself French manicure doesn't required the steadiest of hands. Instead of painting the nail tips from side to side in a half moon shape, brush outward in several tiny strokes to create an even line. Follow with one coat of light pink polish from nail root to tip. The pink should be sheer enough so that it does not overpower the white. Finish with a quick-drying top coat to prevent chipping.

To get a French manicure look without using any polish, use a buffer to smooth the surface and a chamois polisher to impart high gloss shine. A nail white pencil can be used to whiten the tips of your nails in a pinch. The best part is that it doesn't require drying time. Simply dip the pencil in water and swipe it under the tip of each nail. Rinse your hands to remove excess and you're good to go. --Stephanie Simons

French tips are always so hard to get perfect! These are some good tips for sure! I still have trouble and I've watched a million <a href="http://www.ultimate-nail-art-designs.com/products/french-tips-manicures/">french manicure how to</a> videos and read a million articles. This is why I started my printable nail art. They're so easy to press on with a perfect line every time.This comment has been removed.

Here's a tip that has always worked for me: I cut a curve on the edge of a business card and align it on my nails so that the tip is showing. I then don't have to worry about getting the white part down unevenly ;)This comment has been removed.